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Precision rifle tech for hunting- The stock

Bolt action rifles are a very personal thing, there are almost endless options for action types, triggers, barrels, scope mounts, bipods, but nothing changes the overall look, feel or utility of a rifle more than the stock/chassis. Since there are so many options on the market, how would one go about selecting the right stock/chassis for their build? Let’s take a close look at the methodology used in selecting the stock for our precision hunting rifle build.

The first decision to make is stock or chassis. Both have advantages and disadvantages, but for this build a stock was chosen over a chassis and here is why. While a chassis has many advantages, we must consider that this is a hunting rifle. When I think of the ideal traits of a hunting rifle, I want something easy to carry, balances well, streamlined/snag free profile that is quick to shoulder and comfortable to shoot in multiple positions. While a chassis can check many of these boxes, I feel that a stock does them all, and does them better. A vertical pistol grip on a chassis is great for shooting prone, or compromised positions to maintain perfect finger placement on the trigger, but they lack the natural quick shouldering and pointability that a stock provides. Another disadvantage to the chassis is the fact that many are machined from aluminum. Anyone who has handled bare metal in sub-freezing conditions understands the advantage of wood or synthetic stock materials in this case.

The stock chosen for this build is a Grayboe Terrain. The Terrain was chosen due to its hybrid design, it is a very well balanced blend of a traditional sporter and tactical stock. While it has the aesthetics and feel of a traditional hunting stock, the grip is a little more vertical, the comb is raised for a better cheek weld, and it features QD sling flush cups in multiple positions. The stock is made from a very durable and attractive fiber reinforced polymer material, and has a very high quality feel for a great price.

Grayboe Terrain stock

Due to the custom prefit criterion barrel being used in this application, the stocks barrel channel needed to be inletted to fit. This is a pretty straight forward process of marking the barrel with inletting marker and removing material from the stock until there is a perfect fit. After the barrel channel was inletted, the action was bedded. One nice feature of the Terrain stock is that it is inletted for the use on M5 pattern bottom metal, in this case the Pacific Tool and Gauge M5 stealth fits perfectly.

Next we will be putting the finishing touches on this rifle including the scope and mounts. Stay tuned to see how well it shoots and handles.